Method of fabricating two layer cups and brassiere

ABSTRACT

A cup is molded from two layers of stretchable materials by molding first the crown portion, inverting the materials and then molding the remainder of the cup. The resulting cup has a non-stretchable crown portion, a substantially non-stretchable longitudinal cup portion and a unitary multidirectional stretchable periphery portion. A pair of these cups are used to form a unique brassiere wherein the base layer forms a unitary cup, support frame and torso-encompassing portion.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This is a divisional application of Ser. No. 280,402, filed July 6,1981, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,375,445 issued Mar. 1, 1983.

The present invention relates generally to brassieres and morespecifically to a method of making an improved brassiere cup whichincludes a shape supporting panel in the cup.

These shape supporting panels in the cup which form less than the fullthree dimensional structure of the cup are well known, similarly theproblems in fabricating such cups are also well known as described inU.S. Pat. No. 4,172,002 to Gluckin. As a solution to the prior artproblems, Gluckin suggests laminating the support panel to athermoplastic support material and then adhering both to a ply ofmaterial from which the complete cup is to be formed. The three layercomposite lamina is then molded to form the complete cup over a hotmolding die. Although Gluckin solves the problem of the prior art ofpuckering or wrinkling of the material, the use of the thermoplasticsupport material and the heating to create a bond creates a stiff breastcup of undesirable hand.

Another problem with the Gluckin method is that the support panel actsas a thermal insulator to the extent that the outside layer is notevenly heated. This causes uneven stretching of the outside layer duringmolding which unevenly changes the characteristics and thickness of theoutside layer. Thus, the thickness of the cup will vary since theoutside layer in the three-layered portions is not reduced as much as itis in the two-layered portions.

Gluckin deals specifically with polyesters versus stretchable materialsand thus does not consider the problem of molding two layers ofstretchable materials over an open male mold. Even though Gluckindiscusses molding using a male mold on one side, the same problem wouldexist for the center layer of three layers using both a male and femalemold simultaneously.

Other prior art techniques of forming a composite cup having a supportpatch include molding the patch and the brassiere cup separately andthen joining them by sewing along the periphery of the patch. Since thetwo layers are molded separately, they cannot always be matched in thepost-molded condition and thus undesirable wrinkles and creases areproduced.

With the fashion trend to the natural look, the number of seams andstiff portions of a brassiere must be reduced to a minimum. Thus, it isdesirable to make as many pieces unitary thereby eliminating seams.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide a two-layer moldedbrassiere cup of increased hand.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a two-layer moldedbreast cup without the need of prior lamination of the layers.

A further object of the instant invention is to provide a two-layermolded breast cup with varying stretch characteristics along thelongitude of the cup.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a brassiereincorporating a two-layer molded breast cup of increased hand.

An even further object of the present invention is to provide atwo-layer molded brassiere cup having uniform thickness along each layerof the cup.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide abrassiere having the minimum number of seams.

These and other objects of the invention are attained by attaching thefirst layer or support panel to a second layer which forms more than thearea of the to-be-formed cup. The crown area of the to-be-formed cup isclamped to include both the first and second layers, and it is stretchedover a hot male mold. The fabric is then inverted and clamped to form atotal cup area larger than the crown area which is then stretched over ahot male mold. The resulting structure is a two-layer molded breast cupwherein the first area or crown is non-stretchable, the remainder of thebreast cup has substantially no longitudinal stretch and the remainingarea of the two layers has complete multiple directional stretchabilityof the original two-layer fabrics.

The first layer may be cut to have an area less than the full area ofthe to-be-formed cup and is attached around its periphery to the secondlayer. The second layer may be cut to form a unitary breast cup, supportframe and torso-encompassing portion. It is then joined at a lateraledge with a second unitary breast cup, support frame andtorso-encompassing section to form a complete brassiere. Elastomerictrim is attached to the upper edges of the second layer and a continuouselastomeric band is attached along the bottom of the joined secondlayers. Fasteners are attached to the other lateral edges of the secondlayer, and shoulder straps are attached to the second layer.

Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present inventionwill become evident from the detailed description of the invention whenconsidered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the first and second layers prior toattachment.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the first and second layers after attachmentillustrating the first and second clamping areas.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the first molding stepincorporating the principles of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the second molding stepincorporating the principles of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of a brassiere constructed inaccordance with the present invention with the torso-encompassingportion shown turned into the plane of the front portion thereof.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The method of fabricating a two-layer molded breast cup begins asillustrated in FIG. 1 with a first layer 10 cut to form less than thefull area of the to-be-formed cup positioned and a second layer 12 whichis larger than the area of the to-be-formed cup. The first layer 10 isattached to the second layer 12 about its periphery preferably bystitching 14 as shown in FIG. 2. The first layer 10 and second layer 12are chosen to be of multi-directional stretch material or fabric whichincludes spandex or other heat-treatable stretchable polymers. One suchfabric is Lycra. It should be noted that other methods of attaching thetwo layers together may be used, for example, bonding first layer aboutits periphery to the second layer. As noted previously, the use ofadhesive or other bonding techniques may be undesirable since itdecreases the softness and adds some rigidity to the final structure andthus decreases the hand.

Although the present description will be directed to the first layerbeing cut to form less than the full cup area, the method of the presentinvention is applicable to any two-layer stretch fabric cupconstruction. The first layer can be cut to have an area equal to thetotal cup area or even the same area as the second layer.

For purpose of clarity, a first dotted area A is shown in FIG. 2defining the crown portion of the to-be-formed cup. A second dotted lineillustrates the second area B which is the total area used to form thetotal cup.

The two layers 10 and 12 are clamped in a frame having two clampingmembers 16 and 18 with an opening defining the area A marked in FIG. 2.This clamp confines the stretching or molding of the material to the Aarea to define the crown of the breast cup. The clamped material is thenstretched over a first heated male mold 20 as illustrated in FIG. 3. Thetemperature of the mold and the time of molding are selected such thatthe elastomeric material of fabric layers 10 and 12 in the crown area Ahave been stretched to their maximum and the heating setting of thisarea has just started. There is some degree of stretch in the crown Aafter the first molding step and this stretch is easy and about inbalance with the single ply area of the cup. It should be noted that inthe first molding step of FIG. 3, the second fabric material 12 isagainst the mold 20 with the first fabric layer 10 not in contact withthe mold 20. For a Lycra fabric, the first molding period is in a rangeof 5 to 10 seconds with the male mold have a temperature in the range ofabout 388° F. to 395° F.

The two layers of material 10 and 12 are then removed from the clampframe 16 and 18, inverted and placed in a second clamp frame havingmembers 22 and 24. The second clamp frame has an opening defining thearea B illustrated in FIG. 2. This area B defines the base of thefinally formed breast cup. The frames 22 and 24 are then lowered onto asecond heated male mold 20' with the first layer of fabric 10 againstthe mold 20'. This stretches the fabric layers 10 and 12 in the area Bwith the frames 22 and 24 limiting the stretch to this area B. Themolding period is in the range of 20 and 35 seconds with the temperaturein the range of about 392° F. to 400° F.

Since the crown area A has been substantially pre-formed in the previousmolding step, there is almost no additional stretching of the crown.This allows a more evenly divided stretch force along the area betweenthe crown portion A and the periphery B. Thus, the cup has a more evenlydefined shape. By molding the crown portion first, the stress along thisportion is more evenly divided and thus the undesirable thinning at theapex of the crown is avoided.

By inverting the composite material between the first and second moldingstep, the layers 10 and 12 in the crown area both are subjected tosubstantially the same amount of heat. Thus, they have uniformstructure. If this did not take place, the layer of material closest tothe mold would set faster and harder which is undesirable.

The combined double molding process of the present invention produces acup having a crown and remainder of cup portions of different stretchcharacteristics than the original material or fabric. The crown portionA is non-stretchable and the remainder of the cup portion, between thecrown portion A and the periphery B, is non-stretchable in thelongitudinal direction indicated by the arrow L in FIG. 4 while havingstretchability in the transverse direction indicated by the arrow T. Theremainder of the first and second layers external to the area B maintainthe multi-directional stretchability. This specific combination ofmultiple layers of material and their selected degrees of stretchabilityproduce a very unique cup. The crown portion being non-stretchableprovides shape to the crown portion of the cup. The remainder of the cupbeing non-stretchable in the longitudinal direction provides support anduplift in the cup and also the stretchability in the transversedirections allows for adjustability for the size of the cup. This isneeded since most women are not truly a given cup size. The remainder ofthe frame being stretchable in the multi-direction allows the remainderof the material to be used as a support frame and thus alleviates one ofthe major seams in a brassiere in construction, namely the seam thatattaches the cup to its support frame.

It should be noted that although the process is illustrated wherein thesecond layer 12 is first applied against the mold and then inverted withthe first layer 10 finally being against the mold, these may bereversed. Since the first layer or support patch 10 is to be on theinterior of the finally formed cup, it is preferred that it be againstthe mold in the final or second molding step.

Although the processes of FIGS. 3 and 4 were illustrated using two malemolds 20 and 20', the first mold merely has the shape of the crown andthe second mold being the shape of the total cup, it is evident that asingle mold may be used. The process of FIGS. 3 and 4 would be carriedout on a single male mold by lowering the clamping frames down a firstdepth to define first the crown in the first molding step and afterinverting and reclamping, lowering the clamping frame down a seconddepth greater than the first depth to form the full cup portion in thesecond molding step. The present process can be carried out on astandard male molding machine.

Although it is preferred that the base layer 12 be relatively large tofacilitate clamping during the molding process and the subsequentcutting to form the shape of the unitary breast cup, support frame andtorso-encompassing portion, the layer 12 may be cut prior to molding ifso desired.

The unique two-layer molded cup fabricated according to FIGS. 1-4 may beused to form a brassiere having unique characteristics. Referring toFIG. 5, a brassiere 30 is shown having a pair of bust assemblies 32 and34. Each bust assembly includes a unitary layer 36 forming the breastcup, support frame, and torso-encompassing portion. A patch 38 isattached to the interior of the cup by stitching 40 and forms almost allof the lower cup portion and a substantial portion of the upper cupportion as well as a lower portion of the support frame. The upperportions of layer 36 forming the support frame have attached theretoelastomeric trim 42 and 44.

The lower inner lateral edge of the bust assemblies 32 and 34 are joinedby a medium panel 46 which is illustrated as an open net pattern. Thecontinuous elastomeric band 48 is attached along the bottom edge of thesupport frame of the joined bust assemblies 32 and 34. Complementaryfasteners, for example, hook and eyes 50 and 52 are attached to theexterior lateral edge of the layer 36 which forms the torso-encompassingportion.

A pair of shoulder straps 54 are connected to the top portion of thesingle layer 36 of the support frame directly or through a highlyelastomeric portion 56. The other end of the strap 54 is connectedthrough a ring 58 to the torso-encompassing portion of the layer 36. Anadjustable element 60 is provided on the strap 54.

It should be noted that although the brassiere illustrated in FIG. 5shows the breast cup assemblies 32 and 34 joined in the center by thepanel 46 and the complementary fasteners 50 and 52 at the oppositelateral edges, the fasteners may be provided in the center and thetorso-encompassing portions secured together at their end. Also, the cupassemblies 32 and 34 may be joined directly to each other without centerpanel 46.

As can be seen by an examination of the brassiere 30 of FIG. 5, thereare no seams on the bra cup, support frame or torso-encompassing sectionexcept for along the edges wherein the elastomeric trim or band areattached other than the thin stitching attaching the patch 38 to thelayer 36. Thus, the amount of undesirable seams and stitchings have beeneliminated. by using the unique process of FIGS. 1-4, a unitary bra cup,support frame and torso-encompassing portion are provided which have thesame structural support and give of prior art brassieres without theundesirable appearances of prior art brassieres.

From the preceding description of the preferred embodiments, it isevident that the objects of the invention are attained in that a uniqueprocess for fabricating a breast cup and a resulting brassiere areshown. Although the invention has been described and illustrated indetail, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of example andillustration only and is not to be taken by way of limitation. Thespirit and scope of the present invention are to be limited only by theterms of the appended claims.

What is claimed:
 1. A method of fabricating a brassierecomprising:attaching a first layer of stretchable material having anarea less than the total area of a to-be-formed cup to a second layer ofstretchable material, said second layer to form a unitary half of abrassiere including the cup portion, support frame portion andtorso-encompassing portion; molding a first area including a substantialportion of said first layer and juxtaposed portions of said second layerto form the crown of the cup; molding a second area of said first andsecond layers including said first area to form the remainder of thecup; repeating the preceding steps to form another cup; attachingelastomeric trim to the upper edges of said second layers; joining saidsecond layers at a lateral edge; attaching a continuous elastomeric bandalong the bottom of the joined second layers; attaching complementaryfasteners to the other lateral edges of said second layers; andattaching a pair of shoulder straps to said second layer.
 2. A method offabricating a brassiere according to claim 1 wherein said first area issufficiently stretched and heated during the two molding steps to form adual layer cup having a nonstretch crown.
 3. A method of fabricating abrassiere according to claim 1 wherein said second area is sufficientlystretched and heated during the cup molding step to form a dual layercup having substantially no longitudinal stretch.
 4. A method offabricating a brassiere according to claim 3 wherein said first andsecond layers are originally multi-directional stretchable material. 5.A method of fabricating a brassiere according to claim 1 wherein saidcrown molding step includes securing said first area of said first layerand juxtaposed portion of said second layer about the periphery thereofto limit the stretching to said first area and stretching said firstarea over a male mold.
 6. A method of fabricating a brassiere accordingto claim 5 wherein said cup molding step includes securing said secondarea of said second layer larger than said first area about theperiphery thereof to limit stretching to said second area and stretchingsaid second area over a male mold.
 7. A method of fabricating abrassiere according to claim 1 wherein said crown molding step isperformed with one face of said joined first and second layers stretchedover a heated male mold and said cup molding step is performed with theother face of said joined first and second layers stretched over aheated male mold.
 8. A method of fabricating a brassiere according toclaim 1 wherein said first layer is attached to said second layer onlyalong the periphery of said first layer.
 9. A method of fabricating abrassiere according to claim 1 wherein said first layer is substantiallytriangular and forms almost all of the lower portion of the cup andsubstantial portions of the upper portion of said cup.